


Calls Me Home

by GanglyLimbs



Series: Mavinseg Event [3]
Category: Rooster Teeth/Achievement Hunter/Funhaus RPF
Genre: Angst, Knight! Lindsay, Knight! Michael, Multi, Witch! Meg, king AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-22
Updated: 2017-05-22
Packaged: 2018-11-03 17:38:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,509
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10972143
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GanglyLimbs/pseuds/GanglyLimbs
Summary: Michael has his orders. He could not disobey.





	Calls Me Home

**Author's Note:**

> I know it's a day late but he's my King AU story for Mavinseg Week! I had actually started this for last years Mavinseg Week but never finished.

When it came down to it, Michael was a Knight. Had always been and would always be.

And they knew it would end like this. With the four of them, and what they were, and what they could be, and obligations, and duty.

Michael was ordered to kill the three loves of his life.

Michael was a Knight, bound to follow orders. They knew he would.

~

Truthfully, Michael never stood a chance. Not since the day he met Gavin Free.

Ten years old and standing in the castle courtyard, Michael held his wooden sword and tried to follow the instructions that were being yelled out by the Captain of the Guard. Even though he was still too young to enroll in the army, that wasn’t going to stop Michael from dreaming.

And then he heard giggling that had broken his concentration and he had stumbled. Turning, to scream at the idiot who dare mess him up, Michael came face to face with a boy that shone like gold. Blond hair and tan skin and a smile that was brighter than the sun.

And that was it. Michael was gone.

Turns out the golden boy was a war orphan that the King had adopted (Michael had been too young at the time to understand or really care what that meant and he wouldn’t till years later when Michael saw the guilt and pain flashing across Geoff’s face) named Gavin Free who loved to make others smile.

Their relationship was odd. Michael was an angry child and Gavin never seemed to frown and no adult seemed to _understand._ They would whisper about how much Michael seemed to hate the younger boy and how much Gavin was an annoyance.

They didn’t know that for Michael, a child who had never known a kind hand, that was how he showed his appreciation. Didn’t know that for Gavin, who didn’t have many other children to interact with, that was how he communicated. The adults never saw how Michael protected Gavin from others or how Gavin was there to tend to his wounds.

Their relationship was odd but it worked and it was theirs.

~

And if Michael had thought he was screwed when meeting Gavin, he was absolutely, totally fucked upon meeting Lindsay Tuggey.

Fifteen and patching his own wounds in the broken weapon shed, it seemed like his only friend in the world was Gavin. And then a voice spoke up from behind him.

“You did it wrong.”

Michael turned to glare at the offender and was floored at what he saw. A girl with stunning blonde hair and a scowl and intense eyes staring back. She was dressed casually, but even from where he sat, Michael could tell the material to make her pants and shirt cost more than his life.  A Royal of some kind then.

“Did what wrong?” He asked, scowling back. He may be stunned but he wasn’t going to take an insult lightly.

“Your fighting. You were doing it wrong.” She said, voice very much matter of fact.

Michael sneered at her. “And I suppose you think you know everything about fighting?”

“Yeah, I do. My daddy taught me.” The girl’s head was held high. Michael grinned before standing up and throwing her a training sword.

“Show me what you have then.”

Later, after she helped pick Michael up from the ground, she told him her name. Lindsay Tuggey, the daughter of a knight that had moved into Michael’s kingdom. Her dad had been the Captain of the Guard of another king, before the king was overthrown and Lindsay’s dad thrown out.

Since then, they were often seen, discussing battle strategies and the proper way to hold a weapon. Gavin had, at first, been shy, watching form the shadows at the way they interacted. Then Lindsay had, literary, pulled him in their talks and that was it.

The three of them, inseparable.

~

With Lindsay and Gavin, Michael had thought he was complete.

Then he turned twenty and ran face first into a fiery young witch.

Now a Knight-In-Training and quickly raising through the ranks, Michael was free to roam the castle walls, eyes looking out the windows to the court yard below where the experienced knights practiced. Too busy dreaming the day he could be down there, Michael hadn’t been aware of another person walking towards him.

With a yelped, Michael took whoever it was down with him. “Fuck, sorry. Didn’t see you, sorry.” Michael was quick to apologize, before picking himself up and the young woman he ran over.

“Fuck, that hurt.” The woman complained, dusting off her dress.

Michael went to apologize again but was stopped short when the woman turned her eyes to him. Dark red hair and bright, sharp eyes scrutinized him. The girl was short but she didn’t seem at all intimidated by him or his sword.

Putting her hand on his hip, she leveled him with a look. “What?”

Shaking himself, Michael palmed the back of his head, cheeks rosy red. “I’m sorry. Bit of day dreaming. I’m Michael Jones.”

“Meg Turney.” Meg had raised an eyebrow. “Day dreaming, huh? Tell me about it?”

And surprisingly, Michael had. Told her all about his dream to join the ranks of true Knights, how he wished to join the battlefield, and one day move up to protecting the King. Meg had listened and nodded and seemed interested in what Michael had to say. Then Michael asked about her and Meg talked back.

Turns out she was a visiting Witch, the daughter of one of King Geoff’s friends. She would be staying for the rest of the summer. It didn’t take long for Michael to introduce Meg to Lindsay and Gavin, and the three of them became four.

~

The journey from friendship to romance was actually pretty easy. Michael and Gavin kissed each other drunk, Lindsay picked Michael to be her date to the Summer festival, Meg conjured up a flower for Michael to wear with his armor, Gavin and Lindsay were often found holding hands, Michael walked in on Meg dancing for Lindsay once, and Gavin goes red anytime they mention the time he was chosen to be Meg’s partner at one of Geoff’s royal balls.

The three of them are there for Lindsay when her dad dies, they celebrate when Meg decides to stay in their Kingdom, they fight and argue, and Michael always seems to go between wanting to hit Gavin to kissing him.

It was fantastic. Michael was constantly walking on heaven. He had three wonderful partners that encouraged him every step of the way as he continued to train.

Then Michael gets his dream. He’s welcomed into Knighthood.

Then everything goes to shit.

~

Gavin comes to them somber one day. Geoff got a letter. The Kingdom to the North of them, the one ruled by the feared Mad King, had declared war.

Michael was shipped out with the rest of the army a week later.

His first battle is hard. Michael has had to kill before, but that was in duels, with rules and regulations and honor. War had none of that. It was kill or be killed and Michael really, really didn’t want to be killed.

He tries to send letters home as often as he could. Every day he writes to the three he left behind. He doesn’t know how often they get home, but all Michael can do is continue to write.

Michael moves from battlefield to battlefield. He wades his way through mud and blood, and fights as hard as he can.

It still doesn’t save him from the arrow that strikes him down.

~

Michael wakes to glowing red eyes and instantly knows. He’s dead.

Meg had explained necromancy to him once, as she tried to bring a dead flower back to life. It’s not magic to be taken lightly. Those you bring back are in an in-between state, no longer dead but not actually alive. The magic is tricky, Meg said to him with serious eyes. It’s not one to be abused.

Seeing Meg do it and being the one it’s done to are two separate things. Michael finds he cannot move on his own without his Master (the one with the red eyes, the one they call Mad King, the one who’s raising entire armies from the grave) telling him what to do. He cannot disobey whatever order his Master gives him. The magic animating his limbs will not allow him to disobey.

Under the influence, Michael turned on his once allies, slashing through everyone. Days turn to weeks turn to years and here Michael is again, rising through the ranks, but for an entirely different reason. No matter how much Michael screams _“No”_ in his mind, he can do nothing but follow orders. After a while, Michael had to resigned himself, that this is what he will be doing for the rest of his suddenly immortal life.

When Michael wasn’t sent out to kill, he spent his time thinking about his loves. How he wished to see Lindsay’s sweet smiling face or hear Gavin’s squeaky laugh or share a knowing smirk with Meg. He wanted to kiss them and touch them and make love to them. He wondered how they were doing, he hoped Geoff fared well, that one day they would defeat the Mad King.

Michael secretly hoped that one of them would be the one to free him from this hell.

Eventually, the Mad King took notice of Michael’s skills and kept him as a personal bodyguard. His given name was twisted, burned from his mind, and Michael became Mogar. Michael lost more and more of himself until all that was left was a brutal killing machine.

But Michael and Mogar never lost the thought his loves.

And apparently, they never let him go either.

~

The Mad King was sitting upon his throne, head resting on one hand, like he was bored with what he was seeing. Mogar stood by his side, sword at the ready and the two of them watched the newcomers before them.

Mogar recognized them. How could he ever forget?

Gavin had grown in the years Michael last saw him. He was taller than ever now and dressed in forest green gear. A bow was ready at his side. _His stance on weapons must have changed too_. Michael mused, but of course he couldn’t say anything.

Meg’s hair was purple and Michael idly wondered how many times she changed her hair. Red sparks were flickering from her fingertips. Even Michael in his dumb downed state could tell what a danger she was. Must have been practicing.

And Lindsay. Sweet Lindsay. She was now dressed in armor. In King Geoff’s armor. The brand on her breast plate declared her a Knight of Geoff’s personal guard. She had her sword out too and held it confidently by her side.

Michael wondered just how much he had missed in his years as the Mad King’s personal slave.

They declared their intentions, they were here to destroy the Mad King, and Michael could feel peace settle over him. They were here to kill the King, to kill him. They were here to free him.

Of course, the Mad King laughed at this. And then the order was give.

Mogar struck forward. His blade clashed with Lindsay’s, her eyes glaring into his. There were no pleas for him to stop, no begging that Michael remember them. For that he was grateful. He wouldn’t be able to handle that.

Behind him, he could hear Gavin and Meg fighting the King, could feel Meg’s magic like static across his skin. It was different to the feeling of the King’s magic. Instead of black slime, Meg’s magic felt like home.

He could also hear the King taunting them, trying to goad them into slipping. He knew who Michael was, knew what he meant to them. Probably why Michael was picked as guard in the first place.

But he didn’t know them like Michael knew them. Each of them was sentimental, yes. But they were also determined and filled with spirit. They didn’t let themselves fall into the King’s trap, didn’t listen to his words. Just kept fighting.

Mogar fought too. Lindsay and he danced around the throne room, steel blades flashing in the candlelight. Michael was reminded of them as children, Lindsay teaching him new moves and Michael pushing her to be better.  

The stakes were higher now, for Mogar as Lindsay proved herself to still be good at sword fighting. Mogar lost his footing a bit at one point and Lindsay took that advantage to stab at his shoulder. He flinched, as it was his sword arm, but just switched the sword to his other hand and continued.

Mogar also got some swipes into too. Michael hated to see the blood on her side, but what could he do? The Mad King still controlled him. So he continued to fight.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Gavin flying around the room with a lot more grace than Michael remembered (another thing that had changed), firing arrow after arrow. He could still feel Meg, could still feel the King. Their magic clashed in audible ways and it left a ringing in Michael’s ear.

Eventually, Lindsay was able to knock Mogar down, hooking her foot around his knee to get him to stumble before clubbing him upside the head. Mogar fell. He did not get back up. The King was too busy with Meg and Gavin and, now, Lindsay to bother to use any magic to call Mogar back up.

Michael’s limbs felt heavy. His head was starting to get foggy. The King’s magic was leaving him, most likely so he could use it in another attack. Michael could feel his heart slowing down, his breathes coming slower. He knew he was dying for the second time and Michael couldn’t be happier.

With a small smile on his face, he listened to the sounds of battle until his breathing stopped.

~

Michael is surprised to wake up for a second time. This time there was no feeling of rotten magic or glowing red eyes.

Instead, he woke up to see three pairs of worried eyes staring down at him. For the first time in a long while, Michael took a breath under his own power. “I studied for years to find a way to reverse what the Mad King did.” Meg rushes to say, nervous. Like she was afraid Michael wouldn’t accept the answer. “We didn’t know if it would work…Actually we thought it would kill you.”

“But there was no way we could let the Mad King continue to use you.” Lindsay said.

“We knew you wouldn’t want that either.” Gavin added.   

Michael blinked at them. Coughed before nodding to let them know he understood. He couldn’t explain his tears right away, his vocal cords were rusty with disuse, but he knew they understood him anyway.

They had come to take him home.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments And Criticisms Welcomed! Come talk to me at my tumblr-GanglyLimbs


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